w. in fact, even congressman kantor and others, who boehner didn't think he could count on the last time around, are being supportive. republicans are trying to calculate how much they have to give in now and is there a way to fall back with the idea of being able to move ahead in a more aggressive way next year. that's why you saw the president in a very preemptive way trying to rule out the idea of tying talks to next february to raising the debt ceiling. >> alan simpson, the co-chair of the president's deficit commission, was on the "today" show this morning and he said all this talk about either side being able to go off the cliff is ridiculous. let me play that for you. >> when you have leaders of parties and people from the administration saying i think it would be to the advantage of the democrats to go off the cliff or i think it will be advantage to the republicans to go off the cliff or the president to go off the cliff, that's like betting your country. there's stupidity invol